HELP! After power failure computer won't turn on!!

allxusedxup · Jun 11, 2004

I just want to say that any information that anyone has will help, as I feel that AppleCare will not help me with my problem. I had my computer in sleep mode the other day, and that night we had a bad lightening storm. My computer and everything else is plugged in through a surge protector, and everything works fine (printer, scanner, monitor,cable modem), but when I go to turn on my PowerMac it will not turn on. I press the power button and it lights up as long as you hold it down, but nothing starts up. HELP ME PLEASE!!!

javabear90 · Jun 11, 2004

I'm guessing your computer is Fried.

However my surge protectors have an "insurance plan" where the company will pay you up to X amount of money for your lost items.

varmit · Jun 11, 2004

I'm not sure

If you can reset a power management unit on a powermac like on a laptop. Look up resetting the PMU.

And so you know, surge protectors wont keep lighting from killing your computer if you leave it connected. The electricity can just jump over the surge protector and right into the computer, frying it.

gwangung · Jun 11, 2004

There is a CPU reset switch on the motherboard. It's a black button about, maybe, 1/8" square. Punch it and you can restart.

I've had this happen to me a couple times and that's done the trick, so give it a try. (I'd snap a pic and send it out, but I'm away from my machine...)

Mr Poop E Pantz · Jun 11, 2004

I had a similar problem with my PowerMac. After a friend turned off my UPC (and accident) the computer would not power back on. The button would light but thats all. The fix was to reset the power manager. I was still under warrenty and don't know how to do this myself, but that sounds like the problem.

jxyama · Jun 11, 2004

varmit said:
And so you know, surge protectors wont keep lighting from killing your computer if you leave it connected. The electricity can just jump over the surge protector and right into the computer, frying it.

um, what? what's the point of surge protector if you had to unplug it? nothing can fry the computer if it's unplugged... unless the surge's time constant is faster than the response time of the protector, surge cannot just jump over the protector. it will be disconnected in time to prevent such a thing.

anyway, the fact your machine lights up when held down tells me it may not be fried. if it was fried, i don't think it would respond at all...

good luck with your diagnosis... and eventual recovery, hopefully...

Muskie · Jun 11, 2004

jxyama said:
um, what? what's the point of surge protector if you had to unplug it? nothing can fry the computer if it's unplugged... unless the surge's time constant is faster than the response time of the protector, surge cannot just jump over the protector. it will be disconnected in time to prevent such a thing.

anyway, the fact your machine lights up when held down tells me it may not be fried. if it was fried, i don't think it would respond at all...

good luck with your diagnosis... and eventual recovery, hopefully...

I thought surge protectors were just for surges from in your house, I didn't think any surge protector could save you from a lightning strike.

JesseJames · Jun 11, 2004

Computers; Infernal machines eh?

superfunkomatic · Jun 11, 2004

it definitely is the PMU unit.
we had the same problem, all computers are on backup power supplies with surge protection and it still happened, only on our G4 machines. easily fixed.
try this article, pcitures and step by step.

http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=30894

virividox · Jun 11, 2004

unless the lighting strikes your computer directly then the surge protector should protect your computer from lighting that strikes your house and enters the wiring.

jxyama · Jun 11, 2004

virividox said:
unless the lighting strikes your computer directly then the surge protector should protect your computer from lighting that strikes your house and enters the wiring.

thank you. that's what i meant.

regardless, lightning wouldn't directly strike a metallic computer unless it was connected anyway.

btw, i am wrong. i've read up on the way surge protectors work. in an extreme surge created by lightning, ordinary surge protectors may not work. the safest thing to do is unplug. so i stand corrected.

allxusedxup · Jun 11, 2004

Thank you all

So before I could check this forum again I called AppleCare. Sure enough it was the PMU, which is very easy to reset, know that i know where it is. Thank you all for your help, I greatly appreciate it.

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HELP! After power failure computer won't turn on!!

allxusedxup

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javabear90

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varmit

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